


You Will Not Be the One Who Suffers (Should You Defy Me)

by I_Gave_You_Fair_Warning



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Aftermath of Amputation, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Malnutrition, Non-Sexual Flogging, Slavery, Untreated Wounds, no dying
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-30
Updated: 2017-06-30
Packaged: 2018-11-21 11:41:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11356779
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/I_Gave_You_Fair_Warning/pseuds/I_Gave_You_Fair_Warning
Summary: When Anakin used to say Obi-Wan had no idea what it felt like to be a slave, he hadn't meant he wanted Obi-Wan to learn.





	You Will Not Be the One Who Suffers (Should You Defy Me)

 

Obi-Wan sat in the burning sand, leaned against the overheated wall behind him, and suffered in silence.

He tried to still his trembling, promised himself he wasn't cold, no matter how much his body tried to lie.

He could smell the wound in his thigh, didn't have to look to know it was bad.

It had been bad when he'd gotten it, two weeks ago.

And now...

_If we ever get out of here, I may lose the leg._

They'd done their best with it, and some of the other slaves had tried to help as well.

Anakin wasn't here. The young knight may have told Obi-Wan where he was going before leaving, but Obi-Wan couldn't remember it. Nothing existed but the pain, the cold, the ache of his sun-burned skin, his tongue begging for water.

He dragged in oxygen over exhausted lungs and wished for Anakin's presence.

He didn't want to die alone while Anakin was far away, trying to find a way to save them.

He felt so alone, so  _lonely,_ it almost hurt.

And then he heard yelling. He found he couldn't care enough to wonder what about.

It was probably Anakin.

Sure enough, moments later, two of the slavers stormed into view, dragging Anakin behind them.

Obi-Wan watched with exhausted eyes, wishing he had the strength to speak, knowing they were going to beat Anakin again.

_I would protect you if I could._

 

* * *

 

When the overseer grumbled about Anakin never  _learning_ to behave, the young man had been proud of himself, even as he dreaded the taste of the whip.

He would never break, and the other was admitting he'd met his match.

“So, since you don't seem to _care,_ we're going to try something else. Flog his friend.”  
Sudden alarm spiked through Anakin's boiling blood. “ _What_?”  
Hands dragged Obi-Wan from where he sat, roughly dropped him on his face.

A hitch of air betrayed Obi-Wan's pain.

“Twenty,” the overseer directed. “And put arm into it.”

“ _No,_ ” Anakin snarled, struggling to get away, but the drugs in his system kept him from accessing the Force.

 

* * *

 

He'd fought.

He fought, and now he knelt in the sand, staring in wide-eyed horror into eyes that no longer looked at his. Obi-Wan's face was turned his direction so the older Jedi wouldn't suffocate in the sand, but after the first few blows, those eyes had averted, unable to bear seeing Anakin watch this.

Anakin had no words left, nothing but the empty howling of his soul as he heard the whistle of the whip, saw his best friend's body jolt, saw blood sliding down battered skin to stain the sand.

And then it was over, the whip-wielder delivering two vicious kicks to Obi-Wan's side and one to his injured thigh before they all sauntered away.

That last assault had driven Obi-Wan over the edge into a faint.

Anakin crawled to him, saw the sand in the cuts, feared the infection it would bring.

Feared almost as much the pain that would be inflicted as he tried to extract it.

Sand had been invented by the cruel to make hell even worse.

Anakin took the opportunity of Obi-Wan being unable to feel pain to extract the rags of his tunic from his back, removing the garment completely.

He wasn't prepared to see the skeletal gauntness of Obi-Wan's wasted body.

_He's gotten so bad so fast—_

Obi-Wan hissed in pain, waking up again.

“Easy,” Anakin soothed. “I have to get you out of here.”  
Obi-Wan's jagged fingers clutched out, trying to find his hand. “I— I can't— If you're going to do that, you have to make sure it works— I won't survive you getting caught again.”

Anakin bit back a sob.

Obi-Wan's fingers wrapped around his own, trying to squeeze, but barely flinching. It hurt Anakin to watch.

“It's alright,” Obi-Wan whispered. “Hush.”  
The tears only fell the harder for Obi-Wan's effort. “You're going to die here, just like my Mom.”

The fingers tried to squeeze his again.

“I won't give up, Anakin. I will keep fighting for you.”  
A low keen escaped his throat as the once and present slave began to rock. “Tonight. I'll try to find a way out tonight.”

Obi-Wan's face twisted. “Please, stay here. I need you here, tonight. I need to not be alone.”

“I can hold you all you need once we escape.”

A single tear slid down Obi-Wan's burned cheek, horrifying Anakin. “Please stay.”

“Okay.”

“Thank you.”

“Yeah. 'Course.” Anakin fought to keep his voice steady, fought the rising dread—

_He's going to die tonight._

_And he knows it._

_And he won't say it because he doesn't want me to argue with him._

His throat closed over.

He stood up, moving so that his body would provide what little shade possible for the man whose life was evaporating before his eyes.

And as for Obi-Wan, he lay there in the sand and simply tried to breathe.

 

* * *

 

He'd lost hope.

In the end, he'd sat there, waiting for Obi-Wan to die, no longer caring if he escaped himself once that happened.

And now he stood in the Halls of Healing, helping Obi-Wan to his feet.

He'd forgotten he was part of a brotherhood.

Forgotten that while he couldn't bring himself to trust them, they'd put their faith in him.

Forgotten that he wasn't the only one who could get a job done right.

He would never forget the moment he huddled over Obi-Wan's unconscious, barely breathing form, heard a commotion, looked up, and saw Ahsoka and Kit headed their way.

Never.

Now, safe, Obi-Wan gripped his arm tight, breathing heavy and nearly drowning out the sounds of the servomotors in his new leg.

_Not from pain,_ Anakin sensed,  _but from fear._

This was new to him.

“Hey.”

Obi-Wan's worried gaze snapped to his eyes.

“You got this.”

Tears filled Obi-Wan's eyes and he didn't respond.

“You helped me figure out my arm, even when I was saying horrible things to you. We survived Tatooine. We'll figure your leg out. I'm not leaving you.”

Obi-Wan gave a grim nod.

A feline footstep in the door, then a delightedly squealed, “Look at you!”

Obi-Wan peered backwards cautiously, only to have his arms full of Ahsoka.

“It looks good, Master,” she assured him, taking a step back to inspect it.

“Stop looking at my thigh,” Obi-Wan returned, tone dry.

Anakin's heart leaped at it, it was the closest to normal Obi-Wan had been in so long—

Ahsoka giggled. “Be grateful you're not female, Master. If you were, I think I'd be head over heels in love with you. Hey, Anakin. The gears in this are more advanced than yours.”

“It  _has_ been a year and a half, Ahsoka, of course there've been advances.”

“Yeah? It has special anti-snagging features so strings and fabric and hair shouldn't catch. Wouldn't that—”

She broke off, shocked, as Anakin wrapped her in a crushing hug.

“Thank you,” he choked. “For coming to get me.”  
She sobered immediately, horrified, patting his arm comfortingly. “Master?”  
“ _Thank you._ ” His tears fell, sliding down her montral as he refused to let her go.

Her arms moved to hold him in return. After a long moment she spoke, her voice subdued. “You never admit I saved you.”

“I do this time. You saved me. And more important, you saved  _him,_ and I am sorry for underestimating you.”

“It's okay,” she whispered. “Anakin, it's okay.”  
And as he peered between her montrals and found Obi-Wan's resolved, if grim, endurance, he wondered if she might not be right.

 

 


End file.
